Release
Namibia Enhances Hydro Capacity
By Frost & Sullivan energy analyst Sandra Ayingono
Engineering News recently reported that a fourth turbine to add 80 MW of capacity is being installed at the Ruacana hydro power station in Namibia. The cost of the installation is $104.4 million. The project is financed by the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau Bankengruppe (KfW) from Germany which contributed in a form of a loan valued at $55 million while $49.4 million came from debt financing and Nampower the state owned utility.
In total 339 MW will be supplied from 2012 by Ruacana upon completion of the additional turbine. This is compared to 249 MW currently generated by the power station. The turbine is expected to be operational around March 2012.The engineering procurement contractors (EPC) responsible for this project are Alstom from France and Andritz Hydro from Austria for the mechanical work, Siemens for the switchgears and Murray & Roberts from South Africa for the civil work.
Namibia’s choice of increasing its generation capacity through the Rucuana hydro power station has two major benefits for the country. The first is to reduce the use of expensive feedstocks such as diesel. The Paratus power station, which was meant to be an emergency station, has been used on a regular basis in 2009 and early 2010 to mitigate the country’s electricity shortages.
The second benefit is in line with the country’s willingness to reduce dependency on South Africa, which contributed 49% of Namibia’s electricity supply in 2009. This is particularly important, considering that South Africa has been experiencing load shedding itself since 2007 and is expected to stop trading electricity with Namibia to meet its own rising demand.
It is imperative for Namibia to build or expend its generation capacity and the 4th turbine in Rucuana is one of most sustainable ways to accomplish this. Rucuana is the main power station in the country, accounting for 94% of electricity produced locally. In addition, this project is beneficial for the country and the southern African Power Pool (SAPP) as the surplus electricity generated from Rucuana is likely to be exported to southern parts of Angola.
The mining sector will also benefit from the project as the uranium industry is currently booming and requires substantial power. Expansion at Rucuana is expected to lead to economic growth and attract more investors into the mining sector. This will in turn create more employment opportunities for locals and increase infrastructure developments in the country.
Another potential major hydro project in Namibia is the planned development of the 100MW Lower Orange Hydroelectrical Power Scheme (LOHEPS). This project includes nine hydroelectric small size power stations.
For more information on Frost & Sullivan’s analysis of African energy markets, please contact Patrick Cairns on Patrick.cairns@frost.com.
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